And then, in the final moments, hands became sweaty, minds became mottled and the game became giant, its burden unwieldy

Quickly, painfully,...

They were clutching the game tightly in their young hands, grasping USC's first NCAA tournament win in seven years, holding the first diamond of a dazzling future.

And then, in the final moments, hands became sweaty, minds became mottled and the game became giant, its burden unwieldy

Quickly, painfully,...

(Bill Plaschke)

Two Providence players rubbed past a screen. Kris Dunn went left. USC followed. Rodney Bullock leaked toward the rim, all alone. "Both of the defenders went with Kris," Bullock said. "When I slipped off I was wide open."

He made the layup, and USC's first NCAA tournament appearance since 2011 ended in heartbreak.

"It's one of the worst ways to lose," guard Katin Reinhardt said. "We're going home when we should be playing."

Afterward, in a quiet locker room, USC players knew that something had changed with about two minutes left in the game. What?

A version of this article appeared in print on March 18, 2016, in the Sports section of the Los Angeles Times with the headline "Layup drilled - Trojans fall apart in closing minutes and are ousted by Friars when they lose a player on inbounds play. - PROVIDENCE 70, USC 69" —
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